Japanese cuisine · Fish & Seafood

Ebi Tempura

Shrimp fried crisp in a wafer-thin, ice-cold batter, served with tentsuyu and grated daikon.

Ingredients · for 4 servings

• 16 large shrimp
• 120 g flour
• 1 egg
• 200 ml ice water
• 2 tbsp potato starch
• 200 ml dashi
• 3 tbsp soy sauce
• 3 tbsp mirin
• 10 cm daikon radish
• 20 g ginger
• 1 liter oil for frying
• Salt

Instructions

1. Peel the shrimp, leaving the tail on, remove the vein, and score the belly side three to four times crosswise so they stay straight while frying.
2. Bring the dashi, soy sauce, and mirin to a boil once and fill into four small bowls as tentsuyu; finely grate the daikon and ginger and set beside it.
3. Whisk the egg with the ice water, stir in the flour only roughly — the batter should stay lumpy or the coating turns tough — and chill.
4. Season the shrimp lightly with salt, coat in potato starch, and tap off the excess starch.
5. Heat the oil to 180°C, dip the shrimp by the tail through the batter, and fry one at a time for 1.5–2 minutes, until the coating is pale yellow and crisp but not browned.
6. Drain briefly on a rack and serve immediately with the tentsuyu and grated daikon.